Chapter 11 “Fractured Bonds”
'Come on, I know you're in here. ' He muttered.
His eyes lit up at a certain box, and he pulled it out. It was full to the brim of little white circular tablets.
"Magically enhanced Temazepam. " He read.
"Sounds good. " He pocketed the box, and walked out.
Trying to act natural, he headed to his own bedroom, and closed the door quietly.
Line Break
Zest, who was passing, had caught Kenji's face as he walked past her. It was blank: devoid of any emotion whatsoever.
She watched him turning left, instead of right, towards Sirzechs' room. That caught her interest, so she followed.
A few minutes after Kenji entered Sirzechs' room, he left, and Zest's sharp eyes caught a bulge in Kenji's pocket. She was too late to call out to Kenji and ask what he was doing, but he entered his room and closed the door.
Walking forward and opening the door, Zest was greeted with a sight that made her stop in shock.
Kenji was sitting on his bed, a glass of water in his hand. In his other hand was a box of what Zest recognized to be Sirzechs' tablets.
He was pouring the whole thing into the glass. Every last sleeping tablet.
Zest knew that Devils had a much higher resistance to drugs than a human did, but she knew that Kenji would likely die if he drank the whole glass.
Wait, Kenji might DIE.
Acting purely on instinct, Zest ran forward and activated her bladed claws, which were as sharp as swords. She sliced the glass up with one strike, and the tablet-water mixture spilt out all over the floor, right before Kenji was about to down it.
"What the hell, Kenji?!" Zest asked. "What the hell were you doing?!"
"Wasn't it obvious, Zest?" Kenji asked. "Trying to kill myself.
"
"Yes, but WHY?" Zest asked, grabbing Kenji by the shoulders so he wouldn't do anything stupid. "Don't you, the Gremory Heir, have anything to live for?"
"Of course not. " Kenji replied, quietly.
"My own family won't support me when it's damn clear that I need it. I'm basically being forced by the people who are supposed to care about me to marry, fucking MARRY, someone against my will.
"
Zest tried to cut in, but Kenji started again.
"Am I just not worth it? Am I really just the bastard son of the Gremory family that Zeoticus always says I am? I heard that Mom and Dad wanted a daughter after Sirzechs became the Lucifer to become an Heiress, but they ended up having me and Rias, and I became the Heir instead! I know that-"
"Stop. " Zest said, grabbing hold of Kenji's mouth and holding it shut.
"Stop right there, Kenji. " She glared at him for a couple of seconds, before her gaze softened.
"Don't say that you're 'not worth it', because you are. Everyone's 'worth it' in one way or another, to at least one person.
And that person for you, is me. " She then slowly wrapped her arms around Kenji.
"Please, don't do anything stupid. " She whispered.
"Promise me. "
"…I promise. " Kenji whispered, pulling away and lying down on his bed.
With a wave of her hand, Zest cleared the spilled water away, and climbed into bed with him. Kenji widened his eyes and tried to edge away from her.
"W-what are you doing?" he asked.
"What does it look like?" Zest replied, with a small smile. "I'm staying here with you tonight.
How do I know if you're not going to sneak out and do something stupid again?"
"…You don't. " Kenji admitted, closing his eyes.
"But I won't. "
After the Gremory Heir's attempt to end his life, and Zest's subsequent stopping of said attempt, Kenji and Zest had become a lot closer, behind closed doors. When Zest was on her days off, she and Kenji would stay together, spending time with each other.
Kenji was slowly going back to his old self, cracking a couple of jokes and beginning to live his more 'rebel' lifestyle, and was seen out of his room quite a lot, unlike the weeks before his suicide attempt, where he had only been seen twice in the three weeks.
Zest was extremely appreciative of the old Kenji coming back to her, and she wasn't going to lie to herself. It might be Kenji's Devilish Charm powers talking to her, but she was quite attracted to the teenage Devil.
If it had not been for the fact that she was in service to the House of Gremory, and that Zeoticus had banned all the servants from being romantic with Venelana, Sirzechs, Rias or Kenji (with the exception of Grayfia, who had become Sirzechs' wife before she became a maid), she would have likely have furthered the relationship between her and Kenji by now.
But enough about Zest. She isn't the main character here (though she IS one of the main characters).
Back to Kenji.
Kenji had a towel slung over his shoulder, and was dressed in only his jeans as he walked out of the gym (he had begun training the day after Zest had stopped him from killing himself) and passed his parents, as well as Renzo and Rika Phenex, and they were conversing. He overheard a small part of their conversation as he passed.
"Drank holy water, barely came out with her life…"
"No! Really?"
"Yes, Ruval was barely able to stop Ravel from ending her life. She has been placed inside the Sitri hospital for the time being.
I have been told that she and Sona Sitri get on quite well, like her and your daughter Rias. "
Kenji's eyes widened as he kept walking. Ravel had attempted suicide as well?! By drinking holy water?
Questions ran through his head faster than he could run. And judging that he was, physically, exceptionally fit, as well as his Devil attributes already enhancing his physical capabilities, that was saying a lot.
How had Ravel managed to get her hands on Holy Water in the first place to drink it?